Method and system for shot tracking

ABSTRACT

A method for pairing a golf club to a receiver for shot tracking is disclosed herein. The method comprises activating a receiver, striking a golf club against a solid object to activate a device attached to a grip of the golf club, transmitting a signal from the golf club to the receiver, receiving the signal at the receiver, inputting the type of golf club associated with identification of the signal and storing the type of golf club in the memory of the receiver.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/287,068 filed on Dec. 16, 2009.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to shot tracking. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and system for tracking shots of a golfer during a round of golf.

2. Description of the Related Art

Golf clubs combine with the players swing to propel a ball toward a favored location and through a favored path. The orientation and speed of the club head at impact largely determines the ball path including carry distance and roll.

The prior art is lacking in a method and system to measure the motion of the club through measurement of the shaft.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is novel in that the observation of the relative motion does not depend on near visible light and uses a coherent pattern to capture the position of the club relative the ground antenna transmitter/receiver. This fixed device also includes a display, computing capability and recording device. This information, when processed, enables the display of the swing and uses data on the club head and ball to calculate the flight of the ball.

This invention is a method for pairing a golf club to a receiver for shot tracking The method comprises activating a receiver. The receiver includes a housing, a microprocessor, a memory, a GPS circuit and a RFID circuit with a transceiver. The method involves striking a golf club against a solid object to activate a device attached to the grip of a golf club. The device comprises a housing, a power source, a shock switch, a microprocessor, and a RFID circuit with a transceiver. A signal is transmitted from the golf club to the receiver. The receiver receives the signal, the signal comprising an identification of the golf club. The method further comprises inputting the type of golf club associated with the identification of the signal and storing the type of golf club in the memory of the receiver.

Having briefly described the present invention, the above and further objects, features and advantages thereof will be recognized by those skilled in the pertinent art from the following detailed description of the invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of components of a system for shot tracking.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of components of a system for shot tracking, including the main body and projection body extending downward.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the shot tracking device and the housing component.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of the circuit diagram of the components of a system for shot tracking.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a method of paring a receiver with a device.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of components of a system for shot tracking with the switch open.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of components of a system for shot tracking with the switch closed.

FIG. 8 is an illustration of a system for shot tracking.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1. shows components of the system which can be attached to a golf club.

Alternatively, the components can be integrated into a golf club.

FIG. 2 shows the components of a system for shot tracking, including the main body of the housing and a projection extending downward.

FIG. 3 shows the housing component of the shot tracking device and illustrates the diameter.

FIG. 4 illustrates a circuit diagram of the present invention. The components of the system 20 within the golf club 50 preferably include a power source, such as a battery 24, a GPS unit 30(a), an RFID transponder and antenna 30(b), a capacitor 30(c), a resistor 30(d), and an enabler 30(e).

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a method 1000 for pairing a receiver with a device. At block 1001, a receiver is activated. At block 1002, a golf club is struck against a solid object to activate a device. At block 1003, a signal is transmitted from the golf club to the receiver. At block 1004, the receiver receives the signal. At block 1005, the type of golf club associated with the identification of the signal is inputted. At block 1006, the type of golf club is stored in the memory of the receiver.

FIG. 6 illustrates components of the system located within a golf club prior to impact of a golf club with a golf ball.

FIG. 7 illustrates components of the system located within a golf club subsequent to impact of a golf club with a golf ball.

FIG. 8 illustrates the system 20. A transponder in a golf club 50 swung by a golfer sends a signal 62 to a receiver 60. The receiver is attached to a golf bag 61, however, those skilled within the pertinent art will recognize that the receiver may be attached to any pertinent device including the golfer, or may stand alone.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a shot tracking device 20 for attachment to a golf club 50 comprises a housing 22, a battery 24 disposed within the housing and a circuit board 26 disposed within the housing 22. A sensor 28 is disposed on the circuit board 26. A plurality of components 30 are disposed on both the first and second side of the circuit board 26. The shot tracking device 20 transmits a signal when the golf club 50 strikes a golf ball and the signal comprises the identification of the golf club 50.

Preferably, the housing 22 is a rubberized material formed around the battery 24, the circuit board 26, the sensor 28 and the plurality of chips. In an alternative embodiment, the housing 22 is an epoxy material formed around the battery 24, the circuit board 26, the sensor 28 and the plurality of components 30.

The plurality of components, disposed on the circuit board 26, include a microprocessor, an REID chip 30(b), a capacitor 30(c), a resistor 30(d) and an enabler 30(e). In one embodiment, the sensor 28 is a shock switch. The housing 22 preferably comprises a main body 22(a) and a projection body 22(b). The projection body 22(b) preferably has a length that ranges from 5 mm to 1 mm. The housing 22 preferably has a diameter, D, that ranges from 20 mm to 25 mm. The battery 24 is preferably a CR1620 having at least 75 milliamps of power.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the shot tracking device 20 comprises a housing 22 with a main body 22(a) and a projection body 22(b) extending downward from the main body 22(a). A battery 24 is disposed within the housing 22 and a circuit board 26 is disposed within the housing 22 and below the battery 24. The circuit board 26 is double sided, and has a shock switch disposed on the second side. A plurality of components 30, including a microprocessor, an RFID chip 30(b), a capacitor 30(c), a resistor 30(d), and an enabler 30(e), are disposed on both the first and second side of the circuit board 26. The shot tracking device 20 transmits a signal when the golf club 50 strikes a golf ball, the signal comprising an identification of the golf club 50.

Preferably, the housing 22 is a rubberized material formed around the battery 24, the circuit board 26, the sensor 28 and the plurality of chips. Alternatively, the housing 22 is an epoxy material formed around the battery 24, the circuit board 26, the sensor 28 and the plurality of board components 30.

The battery 24 is preferably a CR1620 having at least 75 milliamps of power. Preferably, the sensor 28 is a shock switch. The housing 22 preferably has a diameter, D, that ranges from 20 mm to 25 mm. The projection body 22(b) preferably has a length that ranges from 5 mm to 10 mm.

The receiver is preferably a GPS device such as disclosed in Balardeta et al., U.S. Patent Publication Number 20090075761 for a Golf GPS Device And System, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Alternatively, the receiver is a personal digital assistant (PDA), “smart phone”, mobile phone, or other similar device. However, those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize that the receiver may be any device capable of receiving and storing signals from the RFID tag.

Gibbs, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,163,468 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Galloway, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,163,470 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Williams, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,166,038 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Desmukh U.S. Pat. No. 7,214,143 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Murphy, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,252,600 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Gibbs, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,258,626 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Galloway, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,258,631 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Evans, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,273,419 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Hocknell, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,413,250 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

The measurements may be inputted into an impact code such as the rigid body code disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,821,209, entitled Method for Predicting a Golfer's Ball Striking Performance, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

The swing properties are preferably determined using an acquisition system such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,990, entitled System and Method for Measuring a Golfer's Ball Striking Parameters, assigned to Callaway Golf Company, the assignee of the present application, and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. However, those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize that other acquisition systems may be used to determine the swing properties.

Other methods that are useful in obtaining a golfer's swing characteristics are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,638,175, for a Diagnostic Golf Club System, U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,634, for an Instrumented Golf Club System And Method Of Use, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,224,493, for an Instrumented Golf Club System And Method Of Use, all of which are assigned to Callaway Golf Company, the assignee of the present application, and all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize the meritorious advancement of this invention and will readily understand that while the present invention has been described in association with a preferred embodiment thereof, and other embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, numerous changes, modifications and substitutions of equivalents may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which is intended to be unlimited by the foregoing except as may appear in the following appended claims. Therefore, the embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined in the following appended claims. 

1. A method for pairing a golf club to a receiver for shot tracking, the method comprising: activating a receiver, the receiver comprising a housing, a microprocessor, a memory, a GPS circuit and a RFID circuit with a transceiver; striking a golf club against a solid object to activate a device attached to a grip of the golf club, the device comprising a housing, a power source, a shock switch, a microprocessor, and a RFID circuit with a transceiver; transmitting a signal from the golf club to the receiver, the signal comprising an identification of the golf club; receiving the signal at the receiver; inputting the type of golf club associated with the identification of the signal; and storing the type of golf club in the memory of the receiver.
 2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the receiver is a GPS device.
 3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the receiver is a personal digital assistant (PDA).
 4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the receiver is a mobile phone.
 5. The method according to claim 1 where in the solid object is a golf ball.
 6. 